On May 20, photographer Nick Ut responded to reporters about the decision to suspend the copyright of the photo " Napalm Baby" by World Press Photo.
Mr. Nick Ut said: "The photo is copyrighted by Associated Press (AP), so this agency and its team of lawyers will be responsible for responding and informing the public about issues related to the photo's copyright."
In early May, an AP representative said that they had not found " entire evidence" to be able to change the author of the photo. They published a 96-page report on the issue based on an internal investigation.
AP concluded that "it is possible" that Nick Ut took the photo and did not find any evidence that Nguyen Thanh Nghe took the photo on his behalf.
The report pointed out that this issue could not be convincingly proven, due to the passing of time, no important evidence, limitations in technology and the death of related people.
Derl McCrudden, AP's vice president of global news production, said in a statement: "We don't care about whether we have to change the author's name or not, but it has to be based on the truth and evidence. And there is no solid evidence to prove that Nick Ut did not take this photo.
Controversy over the author of the photo " Napalm Baby" was rekindled after the documentary "The Stringer" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, stating that Nguyen Thanh Nghe was the one who took the photo.
"Based on the analysis of the location, distance and camera lines used that day, we determined that photographer Nguyen Thanh Nghe was most likely the photographer," said Joumana El Zein Khoury, director of World Press Photo.
The Guardian reported that the decision to suspend only applies to the copyright of the photo and does not cancel the World Press Photo Award of 2013.
The 1973 World Press Photo Award was presented to Associated Press photographer Nick Ut with The Terror of War (also known as Napalm Baby).
The image of a Vietnamese girl, specifically Phan Thi Kim Phuc, fleeing the napalm bomb attack in Trang Bang, Tay Ninh in 1972 - immediately attracted global attention. The photo shocked the world and had a big impact on peace movements.
